David Foster is slammed by wife Katharine McPhee's furious fans for saying she was 'FAT' during American Idol auditions in resurfaced video
David Foster is feeling the wrath of his wife Katharine McPhee's fans after a video resurfaced on social media of him calling her 'fat.'
The outrage-inducing clip, which was initially posted to TikTok in March 2023, was taken from a concert performance of the couple's show together in which Katharine, 40, recounted the first time she met her future husband, 74, when she was appearing on the fifth season American Idol in 2006.
The singer and actress, who was the runner-up that season, said in a self-deprecating moment on stage in the concert clip that she was 'a little chubby' when David first met her.
But David went beyond that when he turned to look at a photo of his wife — who previously shared her skepticism about their 35-year age gap — from American Idol that was projected on the screen behind his piano.
'Oh, yeah, you were fat,' he said nonchalantly to laughter from the audience.
Fans were up in arms after David Foster, 74, called his wife Katharine McPhee 'fat' in a resurfaced TikTok video from one of their concerts that was posted in March 2023
In the clip, Katharine described first meeting David on American Idol, more than a decade before they began dating, when she said she was 'a little chubby'; seen in 2005
'I was a little chubby, OK? Just young,' Katharine shot back, but many of his wife's fans didn't think there was anything funny about David's comment.
DailyMail.com has reached out to representatives for Katharine and David requesting comment.
But a prosecutorial follow-up video critiquing David's line in the original video got many more likes and generated significantly more conversation on TikTok, where the commenters appeared to be nearly unanimous in strongly disapproving of David.
'This made my heart hurt,' another person shared. 'This beautiful girl was NEVER fat. You don't call your wife fat. As a joke or serious.'
'Omg I cannot believe he said that????' added another stunned user.
Although a select few users suggested that David was only joking, that didn't seem to matter to most.
'Those comments are so hurtful. Hearing from anyone let along your partner. No one should comments on anyone's body "joking" or not,' wrote one person.
Multiple people wondered if David could say worse things in private if he was willing to allegedly insult his wife in front of an audience.
'If he can say that in front of a crowd, imagine the insensitivity [sic] comments in private. Yolanda's comments make a bit of sense now,' one person wrote, referring to the songwriter's ex-wife Yolanda Hadid.
'Oh, yeah, you were fat,' he said nonchalantly to laughter from the audience and outrage on social media
Several users blasted him and wondered if he said even worse things to Katharine in private
Some mentioned that Katharine had struggled with bulimia at multiple points in her life, including just a couple years earlier when she was pregnant with their first child together
Another person added, 'That was awful. If he can say that on stage what does he say at home.'
'That was awful of him!' agreed another user.
Multiple users mentioned Katharine's previously stated battles with eating disorders as context for why they believed her husband's comment was so hurtful.
In 2006, shortly after finishing her stint on American Idol, she revealed that she had struggled with bulimia in the past.
However, after she won a spot on the reality series, she decided to seek out treatment for the condition.
However, that wasn't the end of her issues with eating disorders. While pregnant with her and David's first child together — Rennie David, now three — Katharine struggled with new food issues.
She said on Dr. Berlin's Informed Pregnancy Podcast that she worried that the intense hunger and cravings that she began to experience — a normal experience for many pregnant women — could be the same desire to binge eat that she felt during her most intense struggles with bulimia.
However, Katharine revealed that she began seeing the psychiatrist that she previously had seen during her American Idol days, and that they informed her that it was common for women who had issues with bulimia to relapse if they became pregnant.
Although some viewers of the social media clip suggested David was joking, there didn't appear to be an commenters considering that the line may have been planned out ahead of time.
It's unclear if David's comment may have been scripted or planned as part of banter for the show. DailyMail.com has reached out to reps for the couple; pictured in April in Scottsdale, Arizona
Despite meeting on American Idol season five, they didn't start dating until 2017. They were married in 2019 and welcomed a son, three-year-old Rennie David, in 2021
It's unclear if Katharine or David ever repeated the exchange about her weight in another show, but it's not uncommon for acts to plan out or script apparent 'off-the-cuff' banter in order to create more natural-sounding interactions and to avoid awkward moments.
People reacting to the resurfaced clip appeared to assume that David's 'fat' comment was a genuine statement of his opinion, and negative responses to the video spread to other social media platforms.
Despite having first met on American Idol, it wasn't until 2017 that Katharine began dating.
The lovebirds wed in 2019, and they went on to welcome Rennie David in February of 2021.
